me has to sock it to the middle class or explode the deficit. > deficit. >> reporter: what you're saying it it is unrealistic-- >> i'm saying it's impossible, not unrealistic. >> when president obama said in 2008 i'm going to cut the deficit in half, i'm going to close guilt me, people-- gitmo, people said-- did not sigh he was not telling the truth. >> closing gitmo involved congress and he couldn't get them to do that. the math, people over $200,000, and you still have a trillions of dollars hole, and he hasn't named the deductions he would close. this is a shell game, john. whichever shell you pick up, the middle class loses. the economy will lose, and i think that this is going to catch up with him. >> schieffer: what did the president think of his performance? >> i think the president understands-- you know, the president is his harshest critic, and without getting into detail, i think you can assume he has reviewed the tape and it will inform how he handles these subsequent debates. >> schieffer: do you think he was ill prepared. some are saying it was the people who prepared him.